The "sweet spot" according to PB, is between 50-100 gms of carbs a day. I have found that if I hit a plateau or gain weight, if I reduce that to between 30-50 (to induce ketosis) the plateau I hit now and then gives way to a decrease in weight. But ultimately it's the inches and how you feel. I am also a woman "of a certain age" (in my 50's) and it's just going take a little longer for us.

Micki--I've been wondering if maybe evolution "designed" old women to be very efficient users of food. Why do human women live another 20 years or so after menopause? Why, to help raise their grandchildren, of course! In the ancient past, children whose grandmothers could get by on very little food probably got more to eat: the grandmothers gave the kids most of what they gathered and hunted.

So, maybe we just need fewer calories than we used to, even if we are active. (In addition to all the other primal modifications of diet and lifestyle.)

Micki--I've been wondering if maybe evolution "designed" old women to be very efficient users of food. Why do human women live another 20 years or so after menopause? Why, to help raise their grandchildren, of course! In the ancient past, children whose grandmothers could get by on very little food probably got more to eat: the grandmothers gave the kids most of what they gathered and hunted.

So, maybe we just need fewer calories than we used to, even if we are active. (In addition to all the other primal modifications of diet and lifestyle.)

An anecdotal observation: I've lived with my grandmother before and she eats less in a day than I day for a small meal.

I second that Bushrat, although my grandmother is much much older than anyone here, she eats very small amounts of food, and generally consist of sugars. I think its from two things, one she is hardwired to eat cheap from growing up during the depression, and i also feel that her body just wants easy to digest calories, so sugar is the way to go.. idk, makes sense on a evolutionary point of view, because the older someone gets the less they generally have to offer so they would have to start consuming less.. Just a guess though

For some reason I can't reply to individual posts, so I'll reply to all these ideas in this post. I use nutritiondata.com right now to track carbs, and it's giving me more insight into how carbs sneak in when you're not paying attention.

it probably is silly to be alarmed at "gaining" one or two pounds, but in the past that was how the "insidious weight gain" that Mark talks about started, a little at a time.

I'm relieved to know that other people gained weight too, but have more muscle now than fat. I don't work out with weights but I do Bikram yoga three times a week, which is pretty intense yoga, and I've started doing some sprints in addition to my daily walks. In the summer I garden a lot and that is weight training with shovels, compost, buckets of water, etc. So maybe this summer I'll see some real visible changes. For now I think I still look about the same, which is a little bit overweight, or on the edge of tipping over into being overweight.

No worries. I've only lost about 5 pounds since October according to the scale, but my body is vastly different. I agree to go by the mirror and not the scale.